BILL NUMBER: AB 1639	CHAPTERED  10/10/99

	CHAPTER   926
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   OCTOBER 10, 1999
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   OCTOBER 9, 1999
	PASSED THE SENATE   SEPTEMBER 10, 1999
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   SEPTEMBER 10, 1999
	AMENDED IN SENATE   SEPTEMBER 9, 1999
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   MAY 28, 1999

INTRODUCED BY   Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social
Security (Correa (Chair), Firebaugh, Honda, Knox, and Pescetti)

                        MARCH 3, 1999

   An act to amend Section 19817 of, to add Sections 19827.3 and
19849.15 to, and to add Article 2.2 (commencing with Section
19817.10) to Chapter 1 of Part 2.6 of Division 5 of Title 2 of, the
Government Code, relating to state employees, and declaring the
urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1639, Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social
Security.  State employees:  State Bargaining Unit 8.
   (1) Existing law generally requires state agencies to adopt
regulations pursuant to procedures set forth in the Administrative
Procedure Act, but exempts the Department of Personnel Administration
from that act with respect to regulations that apply to state
employees in State Bargaining Unit 5, 6, 8, or 16.
   This bill would delete the specific exemption for the department
with respect to regulations that apply to state employees in State
Bargaining Unit 8, and would generally exempt the department from the
Administrative Procedure Act with respect to regulations concerning
matters within the scope of collective bargaining that apply to state
employees in a state bargaining unit that has agreed to this
exemption in a memorandum of understanding.
   (2) Existing law requires the Department of Personnel
Administration to establish and adjust salary ranges for each class
of position in the state civil service.
   The bill would require the department to take into consideration
the salary and benefits of other jurisdictions employing 75 or more
full-time firefighters who work in California prior to making salary
recommendations for state firefighters.
   (3) Existing law authorizes the Board of Administration of the
Public Employees' Retirement System to adopt regulations permitting a
temporary extension of coverage of family members in the case of the
death of an employee or annuitant for a period of not less than 30
days.
   This bill would require the state employer, with respect to
specified state employees and officers and employees of the executive
branch of state government who are not members of the state civil
service, to continue, upon the death of an employee while in state
service, to pay employer contributions for health, dental, and vision
benefits for a period not to exceed 120 days beginning in the month
of the employee's death, and would require the surviving spouse or
other eligible family member to be advised of specified rights and
obligations.
   (4) Existing law provides that if any provision of a memorandum of
understanding reached between the state employer and a recognized
employee organization representing state civil service employees
requires the expenditure of funds, those provisions of the memorandum
of understanding shall not become effective unless approved by the
Legislature in the annual Budget Act.
   This bill would approve provisions of a specified memorandum of
understanding entered into between the state employer and the
California Department of Forestry Employees Association, and would
provide that the provisions of any memorandum of understanding that
require the expenditure of funds shall become effective even if the
provisions of the memorandum of understanding are approved by the
Legislature in legislation other than the annual Budget Act.
   This bill would provide that provisions of the memorandum of
understanding approved by this bill that require the expenditure of
funds shall not take effect unless funds for these provisions are
specifically appropriated by the Legislature, and would provide that
if funds for these provisions are not specifically appropriated by
the Legislature, the state employer and the affected employee
organization shall meet and confer to renegotiate the affected
provisions.
   (5) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately
as an urgency statute.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 19817 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
   19817.  This article applies only with respect to regulations that
apply to state employees in State Bargaining Unit 5, 6, or 16.
  SEC. 2.  Article 2.2 (commencing with Section 19817.10) is added to
Chapter 1 of Part 2.6 of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government
Code, to read:

      Article 2.2.  Administrative Procedure

   19817.10.  (a) This article shall apply only to employees in state
bargaining units who have agreed to this article in a memorandum of
understanding.
   (b) The Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3) shall not apply to any
agreements, orders, standards of general application, or any other
directives or guidance entered into or issued by the department
concerning matters that are within the scope of collective bargaining
as defined by Section 3516.  This article shall not in any way
diminish the state's obligation to meet and confer with recognized
employee organizations regarding matters within the scope of
bargaining as defined by Section 3516.
   (c) If the provisions of this section are in conflict with the
provisions of a memorandum of understanding reached pursuant to
Section 3517.5, the memorandum of understanding shall be controlling
without further legislative action, except that if those provisions
of a memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds,
the provisions shall not be effective unless approved by the
Legislature in the annual Budget Act.
  SEC. 3.  Section 19827.3 is added to the Government Code, to read:

   19827.3.  In order for the state to recruit skilled firefighters
for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, it is
the policy of the state to consider prevailing salaries and benefits
prior to making salary recommendations.  In order to provide
comparability in pay, the Department of Personnel Administration
shall take into consideration the salary and benefits of other
jurisdictions employing 75 full-time firefighters or more who work in
California.
  SEC. 4.  Section 19849.15 is added to the Government Code, to read:

   19849.15.  (a) Notwithstanding Section 22777, the state employer
shall, upon the death of an employee while in state service, continue
to pay employer contributions for health, dental, and vision
benefits for a period not to exceed 120 days beginning in the month
of the employee's death.  The surviving spouse or other eligible
family member shall be advised of all rights and obligations during
this period regarding the continuation of health and dental benefits
as an annuitant by the California Public Employees' Retirement
System.  The surviving spouse or other eligible family member shall
also be notified by the department during this period regarding COBRA
rights for the continuation of vision benefits.
   (b) This section shall apply to state employees in state
bargaining units that have agreed to this section in a memorandum of
understanding, state employees excluded from the definition of "state
employee" in subdivision (c) of Section 3513, and officers or
employees of the executive branch of state government who are not
members of the civil service.
  SEC. 5.  The provisions of the memorandum of understanding prepared
pursuant to Section 3517.5 of the Government Code and entered into
by the state employer and the California Department of Forestry
Employees Association, and that require the expenditure of funds or
legislative action to permit their implementation, are hereby
approved for the purposes of Section 3517.6 of the Government Code.
  SEC. 6.  Provisions of the memorandum of understanding approved by
Section 5 of this act that are scheduled to take effect on or after
July 1, 1999, and that require the expenditure of funds shall not
take effect unless funds for these provisions are specifically
appropriated by the Legislature.  In the event that funds for these
provisions are not specifically appropriated by the Legislature, the
state employer and the affected employee organization shall meet and
confer to renegotiate the affected provisions.
  SEC. 7.  Notwithstanding Section 3517.6 of the Government Code, the
provisions of any memorandum of understanding that require the
expenditure of funds shall become effective even if the provisions of
the memorandum of understanding are approved by the Legislature in
legislation other than the annual Budget Act.
  SEC. 8.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect.  The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order for the provisions of this act to be applicable as soon
as possible in the 1999-2000 fiscal year and thereby facilitate the
orderly administration of state government at the earliest possible
time, it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.
